There is a wintry wonderland outside, and I believe it fell today specifically to celebrate Mummy and Yaso's shared birthday. Snow has been falling steadily for about six hours, and it's actually settled this time - there is at least two inches of snow all over our neighbourhood. It's on the grass, bushes and trees, and everything looks so lovely.
Bruce and I both work from home on Fridays, and happily the snow waited until today to get here. That meant we didn't have to contend with the crazy people on the roads who get nervous and think any snow on the road is dangerous, even when temperatures are above freezing and there is thus no ice on the road yet. Tomorrow, however, will probably be another story. Temperatures are now at about freezing point, or slightly below, which means roads will most likely be icy in the morning. It should melt by the time the sun has been up for a few hours, though, since temperatures are expected to be above freezing. And at least we're not in Washington, D.C., where they've had record snowfall and are only now beginning to dig out of the mess. I don't think I ever want to live that far up north.
Happy birthday to the two February 12 gals - we'll have fun in the snow on your behalf!
Friday, February 12, 2010
Monday, February 8, 2010
Touchdown!
Bruce and I had SUCH a fun Sunday!
Yesterday was Super Bowl day here in the land of that other football - the final Americal football game of the season, featuring the two teams that hung on to the very end. The favourites to win were the Indianapolis Colts, but sentimental saps like me were rooting for the underdogs, the New Orleans Saints. The sentimentality was there because of the devastation caused in New Orleans by Hurricane Katrina, from which the state is still struggling to recover. A win for them would have been fabulous for the people of New Orleans. Add to that the interesting fact that the quarterback for the Colts is actually from New Orleans, so he was playing against his hometown. Ooh, the drama!
For that reason, I was actually interested in this year's Super Bowl, even though t it isn't real football. Despite having lived here for eight football seasons now, I hadn't yet watched a Super Bowl. But yesterday, Bruce and I did. And I understand now why it is such an event here. It was such a good game!
But first, a summary of the rest of the day ...
The last time we went out with Bruce's mother, Nell-Ann, and his stepfather, Benson, was a couple of weeks ago when we had lunch at Penang (the restaurant, not the state) with them, the Jacksons (and their daughter Sarah), Jason, Caroline (his wife), Jonathan and Claire (his girlfriend). That was a highly enjoyable occasion, and Bruce's mother expressed a wish to have that sort of a get-together again and also see the house that Jason and Caroline are renting (because they'll be moving in August to a smaller place). Jason and Caroline live in Athens (the one here, not in Greece - that would have been quite a drive), which is a student town that I like a great deal.
Nell-Ann appointed me the social director and assigned me the task of getting everyone together in Athens. Everyone was free for lunch yesterday, so that's when we did the deed (with the exception of Claire, unfortunately, who is away at university). Jonathan rode with Bruce and me, and we stopped at Conyers along the way to pick up Nell-Ann and Benson. The Jacksons (with both their daughters this time - Sarah and Nikki) met us at Jason and Caroline's place. After we had all seen the house and played with their dogs, we left in a convoy for the restaurant (Mama's Boy) , with Jason leading the way. The food was yummy and the conversation was good (and noisy, as you can imagine, with that big a group - 11 of us in total). It was an excellent get-together and that in itself would have made for a lovely day, but there was more.
While we left for Conyers, to drop Nell-Ann and Benson off at their home, the Jacksons and Jason went into Athens to look at some of the shops. Amy and John were then going to come back to our house to spend the evening with us. When we got to Conyers, Benson gave us a little tour of some mansions that had recently been built. Conyers is a lovely town but it's out in the country and not quite where you'd imagine a bunch of mansions being built. As Benson said, it'd make more sense for them to be in Atlanta. However, there they were. Not just mansions but almost mini castles, in some cases. They were huge. A few were so pretty. Starting sale price? $12 million. Yes, million.
After that dream detour, we went to Nell-Ann and Benson's house. We spent a little time there - Bruce and Jonathan had some coffee and we chatted for a while - then the three of us left so that we'd be back in Snellville before the Jacksons reached our house. That was a nice treat. Usually, when we're in Conyers, it's for Christmas and the house is full of people and conversation, but we don't actually get to talk very much with Nell-Ann and Benson, so we enjoyed the extra time we spent with them.
Then we were at home, joined shortly by Amy and John (Sarah and Nikki had other plans), and soon it was Super Bowl time. We had a blast! Amy is exactly like Leela is when she watches football, so Amy and I were making lots of noise cheering (when the Saints did well) and groaning (when the Colts took the lead).
The biggest difference between American football and the real thing is how much longer it takes to play a game of American football. They keep stopping! But that makes watching the Super Bowl on TV fun - the TV commercials become almost as big a deal as the game itself! There is a commercial every few minutes, but because it's the Super Bowl, these specially-made advertisements are usually interesting, funny or unusual. Although it can take several hours before you get to the end of the game, the commercials keep you entertained.
So, the Colts were ahead. But then, woo hoo! The Saints came back with a vengeance! First one touchdown and a nail-biting conversion that they were finally awarded after much deliberation, putting them ahead of the colts, and then an absolutely astounding, eye-opening, scream-causing touchdown that pushed them 14 points ahead of the Colts. The Colts would have needed two touchdowns in less than five minutes to catch up with the Saints, and thank goodness they didn't get there.
It was so exciting! And so much fun to watch the game with Jonathan and the Jacksons! I can understand now why people have Super Bowl parties. Watching sports with other people makes it that much more enjoyable. And the Jacksons are always such good company, anyway. Plus, this was a particularly good game, I think. I don't know if they are all that nail-biting, edge-of-your-seat exciting, but this one definitely was worth spending several hours on.
So, yesterday was a splendiferous day, one that Bruce and I will probably remember for a long time.
Yesterday was Super Bowl day here in the land of that other football - the final Americal football game of the season, featuring the two teams that hung on to the very end. The favourites to win were the Indianapolis Colts, but sentimental saps like me were rooting for the underdogs, the New Orleans Saints. The sentimentality was there because of the devastation caused in New Orleans by Hurricane Katrina, from which the state is still struggling to recover. A win for them would have been fabulous for the people of New Orleans. Add to that the interesting fact that the quarterback for the Colts is actually from New Orleans, so he was playing against his hometown. Ooh, the drama!
For that reason, I was actually interested in this year's Super Bowl, even though t it isn't real football. Despite having lived here for eight football seasons now, I hadn't yet watched a Super Bowl. But yesterday, Bruce and I did. And I understand now why it is such an event here. It was such a good game!
But first, a summary of the rest of the day ...
The last time we went out with Bruce's mother, Nell-Ann, and his stepfather, Benson, was a couple of weeks ago when we had lunch at Penang (the restaurant, not the state) with them, the Jacksons (and their daughter Sarah), Jason, Caroline (his wife), Jonathan and Claire (his girlfriend). That was a highly enjoyable occasion, and Bruce's mother expressed a wish to have that sort of a get-together again and also see the house that Jason and Caroline are renting (because they'll be moving in August to a smaller place). Jason and Caroline live in Athens (the one here, not in Greece - that would have been quite a drive), which is a student town that I like a great deal.
Nell-Ann appointed me the social director and assigned me the task of getting everyone together in Athens. Everyone was free for lunch yesterday, so that's when we did the deed (with the exception of Claire, unfortunately, who is away at university). Jonathan rode with Bruce and me, and we stopped at Conyers along the way to pick up Nell-Ann and Benson. The Jacksons (with both their daughters this time - Sarah and Nikki) met us at Jason and Caroline's place. After we had all seen the house and played with their dogs, we left in a convoy for the restaurant (Mama's Boy) , with Jason leading the way. The food was yummy and the conversation was good (and noisy, as you can imagine, with that big a group - 11 of us in total). It was an excellent get-together and that in itself would have made for a lovely day, but there was more.
While we left for Conyers, to drop Nell-Ann and Benson off at their home, the Jacksons and Jason went into Athens to look at some of the shops. Amy and John were then going to come back to our house to spend the evening with us. When we got to Conyers, Benson gave us a little tour of some mansions that had recently been built. Conyers is a lovely town but it's out in the country and not quite where you'd imagine a bunch of mansions being built. As Benson said, it'd make more sense for them to be in Atlanta. However, there they were. Not just mansions but almost mini castles, in some cases. They were huge. A few were so pretty. Starting sale price? $12 million. Yes, million.
After that dream detour, we went to Nell-Ann and Benson's house. We spent a little time there - Bruce and Jonathan had some coffee and we chatted for a while - then the three of us left so that we'd be back in Snellville before the Jacksons reached our house. That was a nice treat. Usually, when we're in Conyers, it's for Christmas and the house is full of people and conversation, but we don't actually get to talk very much with Nell-Ann and Benson, so we enjoyed the extra time we spent with them.
Then we were at home, joined shortly by Amy and John (Sarah and Nikki had other plans), and soon it was Super Bowl time. We had a blast! Amy is exactly like Leela is when she watches football, so Amy and I were making lots of noise cheering (when the Saints did well) and groaning (when the Colts took the lead).
The biggest difference between American football and the real thing is how much longer it takes to play a game of American football. They keep stopping! But that makes watching the Super Bowl on TV fun - the TV commercials become almost as big a deal as the game itself! There is a commercial every few minutes, but because it's the Super Bowl, these specially-made advertisements are usually interesting, funny or unusual. Although it can take several hours before you get to the end of the game, the commercials keep you entertained.
So, the Colts were ahead. But then, woo hoo! The Saints came back with a vengeance! First one touchdown and a nail-biting conversion that they were finally awarded after much deliberation, putting them ahead of the colts, and then an absolutely astounding, eye-opening, scream-causing touchdown that pushed them 14 points ahead of the Colts. The Colts would have needed two touchdowns in less than five minutes to catch up with the Saints, and thank goodness they didn't get there.
It was so exciting! And so much fun to watch the game with Jonathan and the Jacksons! I can understand now why people have Super Bowl parties. Watching sports with other people makes it that much more enjoyable. And the Jacksons are always such good company, anyway. Plus, this was a particularly good game, I think. I don't know if they are all that nail-biting, edge-of-your-seat exciting, but this one definitely was worth spending several hours on.
So, yesterday was a splendiferous day, one that Bruce and I will probably remember for a long time.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Peace and Quiet
I'd almost forgotten what it is like to have a quiet, peaceful weekend. No crazy running around, trying to get things organized; no packing of things into boxes for storage; no workmen around drilling, sawing or hammering ...
We are into the second week of 2010 and there is finally calm at the Walters household. We are actually getting to relax and be lazy, which seems like a rare treat!
The house still gives me a bit of a (pleasant) shock when I see it as we're coming down the hill towards our cul-de-sac, because it looks so different from the outside. The colour of the new siding goes very well with the roof and has brightened up the appearance of the whole house. The new windows have new curtains to go with them (Bruce spent the last Tuesday in December putting up the rods and curtains, before Ranee and family got here) and the rooms actually have some empty space in them, instead of being covered by boxes and junk. The only thing left to do now is put up Mummy's paintings and some other pictures/photos on the walls.
I think the best part of this whole experience has been discovering how much I enjoy decorating a house - choosing the colour/design of the tiles, carpet and curtains and seeing how well everything goes together now has been such fun. Taste is such a personal thing, of course, but Bruce and those who have seen our "new" house seem to like what I've done and even our contractor approved of the colour choices!
I'll try to take some photos for a "before and after" post. Don't know how many "before" photos we have, though - Bruce and I kept forgetting to take those before the replacement jobs were done.
It was fun have Ranee, Randy, Courtney and Roshan here after Christmas. We got to see and do a lot, but there wasn't enough time to do everything we had planned. Isn't that always the case? Their puppies are so cute and seemed to have a lot of fun in our backyard. It was a huge playground for them. Beau played with them every once in a while, but both he and Belle weren't thrilled by little creatures jumping up on them all the time. They did like racing around with the puppies, though. That is what Beau needs - a dog that will race around with him in the backyard.
Speaking of the backyard, our birdfeeders have been getting lots of visitors in the last few days, because of the cold. We've had below-freezing temperatures for most of the last week, which is rather unusual for this time of the year in this part of the country. We even had a couple of bluebirds make a brief appearance on Friday, after we'd had a sprinkling of snow and rain that froze on the ground. We're hoping they return - they are such beautiful birds, and it is a thrill to see a flash of blue every now and then.
The snow and rain we had on Thursday evening/night led to icy roads on Friday, but happily that is the day of the week that both Bruce and I get to work from home, so we didn't have to deal with the craziness on the roads. There were quite a few accidents in and around Atlanta, and it was a relief to not be a part of the mess. The snow was pefectly timed for us!
We are into the second week of 2010 and there is finally calm at the Walters household. We are actually getting to relax and be lazy, which seems like a rare treat!
The house still gives me a bit of a (pleasant) shock when I see it as we're coming down the hill towards our cul-de-sac, because it looks so different from the outside. The colour of the new siding goes very well with the roof and has brightened up the appearance of the whole house. The new windows have new curtains to go with them (Bruce spent the last Tuesday in December putting up the rods and curtains, before Ranee and family got here) and the rooms actually have some empty space in them, instead of being covered by boxes and junk. The only thing left to do now is put up Mummy's paintings and some other pictures/photos on the walls.
I think the best part of this whole experience has been discovering how much I enjoy decorating a house - choosing the colour/design of the tiles, carpet and curtains and seeing how well everything goes together now has been such fun. Taste is such a personal thing, of course, but Bruce and those who have seen our "new" house seem to like what I've done and even our contractor approved of the colour choices!
I'll try to take some photos for a "before and after" post. Don't know how many "before" photos we have, though - Bruce and I kept forgetting to take those before the replacement jobs were done.
It was fun have Ranee, Randy, Courtney and Roshan here after Christmas. We got to see and do a lot, but there wasn't enough time to do everything we had planned. Isn't that always the case? Their puppies are so cute and seemed to have a lot of fun in our backyard. It was a huge playground for them. Beau played with them every once in a while, but both he and Belle weren't thrilled by little creatures jumping up on them all the time. They did like racing around with the puppies, though. That is what Beau needs - a dog that will race around with him in the backyard.
Speaking of the backyard, our birdfeeders have been getting lots of visitors in the last few days, because of the cold. We've had below-freezing temperatures for most of the last week, which is rather unusual for this time of the year in this part of the country. We even had a couple of bluebirds make a brief appearance on Friday, after we'd had a sprinkling of snow and rain that froze on the ground. We're hoping they return - they are such beautiful birds, and it is a thrill to see a flash of blue every now and then.
The snow and rain we had on Thursday evening/night led to icy roads on Friday, but happily that is the day of the week that both Bruce and I get to work from home, so we didn't have to deal with the craziness on the roads. There were quite a few accidents in and around Atlanta, and it was a relief to not be a part of the mess. The snow was pefectly timed for us!
Monday, December 21, 2009
New carpet!
Our new carpet is being installed as I write this. It was supposed to be done tomorrow, when Bruce would be here working from home, but someone from the store called last week to ask if we could change it to Monday instead, as they had another job on Tuesday. I had already asked my boss if I could work from home on Monday because the guys dealing with the closet doors needed to do some final touch-up work, so we just switched things around - carpet today, closets tomorrow.
Now, however, I suspect that Bruce called the owner of the flooring store and asked him if they could do it on Monday instead of Tuesday, just so that once again, I'd be the one stuck with all the chaos. Moving his computer desk and the TV, along with his stereo system, was a pain because there was such a tangle of wires behind the cabinet. The carpet guys asked me if I could disconnect things before they tried moving everything out of the living room - when I looked at the big mess, I understood why they didn't want to attempt the nightmare. The speaker wires are the worst - they are ridiculously long because it's a surround-sound system, with two speakers at the back of the room. Someone needs to create a high quality but affordable wireless sound system.
I finally got everything untangled and went back to work while the men moved out the furniture, but my work area was drastically reduced because now the TV and cabinet are in the dining room/kitchen, along with Bruce's very large subwoofer and a bunch of other stuff. This is exactly what it was like when the tile was being laid and everything from the dining room was stuffed in the living room, with very little space for me to move around. Somehow, Bruce managed once again to get out of being the one sitting amidst the chaos.
After I finished my news compilation, I went back to the TV and sound system to try and organize the wires a little better. Everything is now neatly bundled up except for those darn stereo wires, which are one big mess. I'd have to remove them from the speakers in order to properly untangle them and that's something I'm not going to mess with. I'm too smart to get between a man and his sound system. (Two wires popped out of one speaker all by themselves when the men began moving the monolith. If only the others had been that obliging ...)
The carpet (what I can see of it from my vantage point behind boxes and speakers) looks pretty - such an improvement over the old one! And there is a chance we may get the new windows installed on Wednesday, followed by the siding on Thursday and next Monday. Someone called me this morning to tell me that and then said he'd call me back to confirm - I haven't heard from him yet. If they get the go-ahead, that would mean working from home again on Wednesday, as they'll need to be in the house for the window installation. But when they're doing the siding on Thursday (if that's confirmed), we won't need to be here, which would be great as they've warned us the hammering will be noisy. I'd be thrilled if it happens this week, because that means the house will be completely ready for visitors when Ranee and family are here next week. The timing would be perfect!
It's cold again today, but we surprisingly have sunshine (which has been quite a stranger in recent days). I'm so glad it isn't raining, because our living room furniture is outside in the front yard right now, as are Bruce's desk and computer. But rain is expected again on Christmas Eve (which, come to think of it, may delay the siding being installed, unless the rain begins later in the evening). So we may end up having a cold, rainy Christmas, which is so wrong - Christmas is supposed to equal blue skies and sunshine!
We had dinner at Bruce's sister Judy's house yesterday - an early birthday celebration for their mother and a Christmas get-together for the family, as well, since they'll be away on a cruise on Christmas day. It was a fun evening. We got to meet Jonathan's girlfriend, Claire, whom we all like. Judy's husband, Louis, just bought a Harley Davidson, so Bruce got to ride it and he was thrilled. He's been wanting to get a motorcycle for several years now (used to have one but gave it up when his kids were little), and I suspect I'm going to be hearing a lot more often now that he needs a bike.
I hope everyone has a blessed, very merry Christmas, surrounded by family, friends and love. We (including Jason, Caroline and Jonathan) are going to have dinner on Christmas evening with the Jacksons, so we'll definitely be having fun. Perhaps we'll be able to play Cranium again, with more people this time. Such an entertaining game.
Now, however, I suspect that Bruce called the owner of the flooring store and asked him if they could do it on Monday instead of Tuesday, just so that once again, I'd be the one stuck with all the chaos. Moving his computer desk and the TV, along with his stereo system, was a pain because there was such a tangle of wires behind the cabinet. The carpet guys asked me if I could disconnect things before they tried moving everything out of the living room - when I looked at the big mess, I understood why they didn't want to attempt the nightmare. The speaker wires are the worst - they are ridiculously long because it's a surround-sound system, with two speakers at the back of the room. Someone needs to create a high quality but affordable wireless sound system.
I finally got everything untangled and went back to work while the men moved out the furniture, but my work area was drastically reduced because now the TV and cabinet are in the dining room/kitchen, along with Bruce's very large subwoofer and a bunch of other stuff. This is exactly what it was like when the tile was being laid and everything from the dining room was stuffed in the living room, with very little space for me to move around. Somehow, Bruce managed once again to get out of being the one sitting amidst the chaos.
After I finished my news compilation, I went back to the TV and sound system to try and organize the wires a little better. Everything is now neatly bundled up except for those darn stereo wires, which are one big mess. I'd have to remove them from the speakers in order to properly untangle them and that's something I'm not going to mess with. I'm too smart to get between a man and his sound system. (Two wires popped out of one speaker all by themselves when the men began moving the monolith. If only the others had been that obliging ...)
The carpet (what I can see of it from my vantage point behind boxes and speakers) looks pretty - such an improvement over the old one! And there is a chance we may get the new windows installed on Wednesday, followed by the siding on Thursday and next Monday. Someone called me this morning to tell me that and then said he'd call me back to confirm - I haven't heard from him yet. If they get the go-ahead, that would mean working from home again on Wednesday, as they'll need to be in the house for the window installation. But when they're doing the siding on Thursday (if that's confirmed), we won't need to be here, which would be great as they've warned us the hammering will be noisy. I'd be thrilled if it happens this week, because that means the house will be completely ready for visitors when Ranee and family are here next week. The timing would be perfect!
It's cold again today, but we surprisingly have sunshine (which has been quite a stranger in recent days). I'm so glad it isn't raining, because our living room furniture is outside in the front yard right now, as are Bruce's desk and computer. But rain is expected again on Christmas Eve (which, come to think of it, may delay the siding being installed, unless the rain begins later in the evening). So we may end up having a cold, rainy Christmas, which is so wrong - Christmas is supposed to equal blue skies and sunshine!
We had dinner at Bruce's sister Judy's house yesterday - an early birthday celebration for their mother and a Christmas get-together for the family, as well, since they'll be away on a cruise on Christmas day. It was a fun evening. We got to meet Jonathan's girlfriend, Claire, whom we all like. Judy's husband, Louis, just bought a Harley Davidson, so Bruce got to ride it and he was thrilled. He's been wanting to get a motorcycle for several years now (used to have one but gave it up when his kids were little), and I suspect I'm going to be hearing a lot more often now that he needs a bike.
I hope everyone has a blessed, very merry Christmas, surrounded by family, friends and love. We (including Jason, Caroline and Jonathan) are going to have dinner on Christmas evening with the Jacksons, so we'll definitely be having fun. Perhaps we'll be able to play Cranium again, with more people this time. Such an entertaining game.
Friday, December 18, 2009
When it rains, it pours ...
... literally and figuratively. It's been raining all day. We've probably had four to five centimetres of rain. There have been floods in Florida and over a foot of snow in D.C. Our backyard is a mud pit and the dogs have been happy to stay in today. Usually when we're at home and it's a sunny day, they enjoy being outside sniffing the air, chasing squirrels and sunning themselves every once in a while.
And now to the figurative part of that expression (I much prefer Shakespeare's "When troubles come, they come not single spies but in battalions." However, the rain quote is more fitting today and for this blog): Did we really dare think that we had identified all problems with the house and were getting everything fixed? That was, of course, tempting fate.
The result? We found out on Tuesday that we have termites. The rotting wood in the wall with the leak was apparently nirvana for them. We have a pest control guy coming out on Tuesday to begin the termite treatment. (He was supposed to come today but postponed the appointment because of the rain.) We were planning on getting a termite contract anyway, because it's one of the many things that will make it easier to sell this house, so that's one more thing off the to-do list.
On the plus side, the mould room is no more! The wall has been fixed and painted, the termites will soon be dead and the new carpet will be laid on Monday. At some point, I'd like to get a futon for that room, so that it can be turned into a bed if we have guests. (Futons are apparently more comfortable than sofa beds - I like the fact that it would take up less room than an acutal bed and can also be used for seating during the day.) For now, we're going to put the single chair from our living room set and a reading lamp in that room, once the carpet is down. That will create a little more space in our living room and also give us a nice reading room.
Just four more days of work next week and then I'm on vacation for the rest of the year. I'm looking forward to the break and to doing a little Christmas baking - some cookies, perhaps. I like trying new recipes and keep coming across yummy-sounding ones in the newspapers and online.
And now to the figurative part of that expression (I much prefer Shakespeare's "When troubles come, they come not single spies but in battalions." However, the rain quote is more fitting today and for this blog): Did we really dare think that we had identified all problems with the house and were getting everything fixed? That was, of course, tempting fate.
The result? We found out on Tuesday that we have termites. The rotting wood in the wall with the leak was apparently nirvana for them. We have a pest control guy coming out on Tuesday to begin the termite treatment. (He was supposed to come today but postponed the appointment because of the rain.) We were planning on getting a termite contract anyway, because it's one of the many things that will make it easier to sell this house, so that's one more thing off the to-do list.
On the plus side, the mould room is no more! The wall has been fixed and painted, the termites will soon be dead and the new carpet will be laid on Monday. At some point, I'd like to get a futon for that room, so that it can be turned into a bed if we have guests. (Futons are apparently more comfortable than sofa beds - I like the fact that it would take up less room than an acutal bed and can also be used for seating during the day.) For now, we're going to put the single chair from our living room set and a reading lamp in that room, once the carpet is down. That will create a little more space in our living room and also give us a nice reading room.
Just four more days of work next week and then I'm on vacation for the rest of the year. I'm looking forward to the break and to doing a little Christmas baking - some cookies, perhaps. I like trying new recipes and keep coming across yummy-sounding ones in the newspapers and online.
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